


your lovely voice in my memories

by moon__goddess



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Flashbacks, M/M, buncha cameos, high school classmates!au, lee sungkyung has a bit more of an active role but that's okay, peep beagle line for a hot second, so many actors get name dropped im SORRY im a slut for kdramas
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-22
Updated: 2019-08-22
Packaged: 2020-08-14 02:30:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20184775
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moon__goddess/pseuds/moon__goddess
Summary: when star actor do kyungsoo hears the ost for his latest drama for the first time, he realizes that it's sung by the same voice he used to hear practicing in the music room in high school.written forOh Lovely Day Fest Round 1 Prompt LD048





	your lovely voice in my memories

**Author's Note:**

> thank you to the prompter for this amazing prompt!!!  
hope you enjoy~

Kyungsoo hates meetings. Abhors them, one could say. He despises how long execs and management can talk about the simplest things, how they start petty arguments over the tiniest details, how he’s expected to sit there and listen to them yell when he could be doing literally anything else.

He has a day off from filming, and he had wanted to spend it going over his lines and playing with his puppy Meokmul, but instead his manager had texted him with a time and location in the broadcast station’s building. So here he is, sitting across from his co-star (actress Lee Sungkyung, he’s known her since they were both cast as supporting characters in one of his very first dramas five years ago) and rolling his eyes every time one of the broadcast execs starts getting angry. At least he’s not the only one - Sungkyung looks as bored as he feels, idly playing with her phone and glancing at her manager every few minutes, and when she glances up and meets his eyes they share a look of commiseration. 

Kyungsoo is broken out of his meeting-induced stupor a while later when one of the execs says, “We’d like for you two to hear the lead OST track for the drama.”

He blinks and looks to the head of the table. “Why?” he asks, causing his manager to discreetly elbow him.

“We want to make sure you approve of the song,” the exec answers. “It’s by a relatively unknown artist, and his company would love it if the song had approval quotes from both of you when their press release drops.”

“Who’s the artist?” Sungkyung asks.

“He’s called LOEY,” one of the other execs says. “Very big on Soundcloud and international streaming sites, but his last couple singles didn’t chart well nationally.”

“LOEY?” she gasps, and Kyungsoo looks on with renewed interest as her eyes widen. “Oh my god, I love him! His collab single with Junggigo was amazing and _ so _ underappreciated, I had it on repeat for _ days _.” 

She grins sheepishly as everyone turns to stare at her. “Sorry, I just… I like a lot of indie artists.”

“Well,” Kyungsoo says, “if you like him, I’m sure he’ll be a good fit for the OST.” He grins at Sungkyung and looks back to the execs. “Could we hear it now?”

“Sure,” one of them says, and turns to his laptop.

He types for a few seconds and clicks on something, and Kyungsoo sits back as the song begins with light, airy synths.

This LOEY starts singing and Kyungsoo is struck by his smooth, deep voice as he croons about loving someone through all four seasons. There’s something about the voice, though, that’s niggling at him, and it finally explodes through his mind as LOEY eases into the chorus of the song.

He _ knows _ this voice.

Knows it better than almost anything else.

He closes his eyes as the music sweeps him into the past.

~

_ Kyungsoo is stuck on cleanup duty. Again. He hates cleanup because the work is so tedious, but he doesn’t mind the solitude of being the only student still in the building. He likes the quiet. It’s calming, giving him a break from the noise of his classmates. There are these three boys in his class, and they’re so loud sometimes Kyungsoo can’t hear his own thoughts. So he’s glad for cleanup, because he can escape their constant yelling. _

_ He finishes wiping the chalkboards and heads down to the supply closet to return the broom and the almost-empty bottle of cleaning solution, but stops as he passes the classroom they use for school chorus. There’s someone in there. _

_ He goes to knock on the door to tell them to hurry up, the building’s going to close soon, but tinny piano coming from what sounds like the room’s crappy computer speakers stops him. And then the boy in there starts to sing, and Kyungsoo freezes completely. _

_ The song is familiar, some American artist that’s been playing on almost every radio station lately, but the boy gives the song life, his husky voice crooning the English words wonderfully. Kyungsoo has no idea what he’s saying - his English is terrible, he has no listening comprehension whatsoever - but he still thinks he’d want to listen to this boy sing every day. _

_ His voice is so nice, smooth and calm, managing to hit notes without sounding labored - and then his voice cracks, and Kyungsoo can’t help the tiny smile that blossoms on his face. The boy keeps going, undeterred, and Kyungsoo admires his determination. _

_ The song ends too quickly, and Kyungsoo scurries off to the supply closet and then back to his classroom, hoping against hope that the boy, whoever he is, doesn’t catch him. _

~

His manager elbows him and his eyes fly open. “Mr. Do?” one of the execs asks. “What did you think?”

How is he supposed to answer that, Kyungsoo wonders. Is he supposed to say that he’s a hundred percent certain he went to high school with whoever is behind that voice? Is he supposed to tell them that he heard this person practicing in the empty music room all the time, all stuttered words and cracked vocals, until whatever song he was practicing could be sung in one go? Is he supposed to say that he was (and maybe still is) slightly in love with said person's voice?

He vetoes all of that and instead simply says, "It's perfect."

The exec smiles. “Good. We’re going to use clips of it as background for the show teasers, and then release the track the day after the premiere.”

Kyungsoo sees his manager nod in agreement. 

One of the other members of the production team stands. “Now that the main OST is confirmed, we’d like to move on regarding shooting locations.”

The woman starts rambling about outdoor and night shoots and Kyungsoo barely manages to stifle his groan.

When the meeting is finally, blessedly, over, Kyungsoo stops Sungkyung on their way out of the building. “You said you’re a fan of the artist for the OST?” he asks quietly.

She smiles at him. “Yeah, he’s one of my favorites. Pretty new on the scene, but his songs…” She shrugs, pulling out her phone. “They’re soothing, you know?” 

He nods. “Could you send me his info? I’d like to hear more of his music.”

Sungkyung grins, her whole face lighting up. “Of course!” Her fingers fly across her phone screen, and after a few seconds Kyungsoo feels his phone vibrate in his pocket. “I’ve sent you his artist profile on Melon, his Soundcloud link, and his Youtube channel,” she says. “Let me know what you think, I’d love to see if we like the same songs!”

He gives her a tiny smile in response. “Thanks, Sungkyung,” he says, tucking his hands into his pockets. “I will.”

They walk out of the front doors in companionable silence - or, they do until they step straight into the waiting horde of photographers. “Mr. Do!” one reporter shrieks. “Ms. Lee! Any comment on your dating rumors?”

“Ms. Lee!” Another reporter yells, trying to shove a microphone through the crowd. “Do you have a response to Park Shinhye’s comment made yesterday?”

“Mr. Do,” a third reporter screams, “is your contract with SM still in renego-”

“That’s enough,” his manager says, shoving someone aside so he can finally stand next to Kyungsoo. “Stand back from my client.” He carves a path for Kyungsoo and Sungkyung, and when they reach the curb Sungkyung hops into her car, giving Kyungsoo a little wave. 

He slides into his own car and sighs. “Can you drop me at home?” he asks.

His manager glances at him from the passenger seat. “I was hoping we could go back to the company,” he starts. “A&R wanted to run some possible magazine shoots by you.”

Kyungsoo sighs again, closing his eyes for a moment. “It’s my day off,” he grumbles. “You know which magazines I prefer, I’ll be fine if you make the decision. I just want to go home.”

When his manager doesn’t respond, he looks at him pleadingly. “Please, hyung.”

“Alright, alright, fine,” he finally says, throwing his hands in the air, and Kyungsoo smiles.

His driver pulls into traffic and he sinks back into his seat, letting his eyes drift shut once more. It’s going to take them at least thirty minutes to get to his apartment, he might as well nap.

~

_ Kyungsoo doesn’t have cleanup duty today, so there’s really no reason for him to be staying inside the building while the rest of his classmates head outside to eat their lunch and run in the crisp fall air. But he’s not one for crowds, for lots of loud noise and laughter (and sure enough, he can already hear the shrieks of laughter that belong to the two loudest boys in his year), so he pulls out one of his review books and starts to flip through it, enjoying the calm, quiet air of the empty building. _

_ If he wanders down the hall where the music room is, for no reason whatsoever, no one is there to witness it. Plausible deniability and all that. _

_ The strands of tinny piano hit his ears and he smiles to himself, a tiny, secret smile that none of his classmates would have thought possible from Mr. Straight-Face Do Kyungsoo. _

_ The same voice from last time is singing, a different melody, but the same voice. He leans against the wall and listens, lets the timbre of the boy’s voice echo in the background as he slowly sits down and opens his review book once again. _

_ The sudden silence is what breaks him out of his studying haze a while later. He glances at his watch and realizes that their lunch hour is almost over, so he quickly stands up and hurries away from the room, rejoining the flow of students coming in from outside. He wants to know who the singing boy is, but at the same time, he doesn’t want to suffer the embarrassment of being caught listening to a voice in the hall like a weirdo. And, he thinks to himself as he reenters his classroom, that had been the most comforting hour he’d ever spent inside the school. He doesn’t want to ruin that sense of peace, of security, that he’d felt as the boy practiced and he studied. _

~

“Hey, Kyungsoo-yah, wake up,” he hears, pulling him out of his doze. He opens his eyes to see his manager leaning into his space from the front. “You’re home.”

“Thanks,” he mumbles, rubbing his eyes. “I’ll see you tomorrow, yeah?”

“Yeah. Remember, call is at 9.”

Kyungsoo nods. “Got it.” He pushes the car door open, already digging in his bag for his house keys. He tugs them out once he puts his hands on them, and then turns to shut the door, waving at his manager as he does so.

He waves back before the car drives off. Kyungsoo huffs a quiet breath of laughter before he turns to his door, carefully unlocking it and stepping inside.

He’s greeted by a series of loud barks, and he smiles as a black ball of fur immediately starts to jump around. “Down, Meokmul,” he says, and of course his dog doesn’t listen, just continues to bark and dash around him. He can’t help but laugh as he puts his bag down and slides his feet into his house slippers. “Come on, you big dummy,” he says, and Meokmul races him to the couch, bouncing into his lap as soon as he sits down. “Hello, my Meokmullie,” he coos, scratching his dog’s ears, and Meokmul wags her tail, tongue lolling out of her mouth. 

After she’s satisfied with his amount of petting, she curls up next to him, her head resting on his leg. “Good baby,” Kyungsoo says, scratching her head once more, before pulling out his phone and scrolling to Sungkyung’s message from earlier.

He clicks on the Melon link she’d sent him and waits as the app loads, Meokmul pushing her nose into his knee (most likely because he’d stopped petting her). He gives her a chin scratch, smiling as she stretches her tiny little body out in joy, and then when he sees that the profile’s loaded, clicks on the first song. 

It’s the collab with Junggigo, the song Sungkyung had said was her favorite, and as Kyungsoo lets the song play he can see why. LOEY and Junggigo’s voices blend extremely well, their harmonies tight, giving the song a sweet air. He finds himself playing it again, and again, and once more, just to hear his voice again.

He forgets to hit repeat after the song fades out, and when the next song begins he sits up ramrod-straight, dislodging Meokmul from where she’d started to sleep on his thigh. 

~

_ It’s sort of become his routine, now, to wander down the hall where the music room is during his free period, during his lunch hour, after school when the building empties out, any time he can, really. If the boy is there, he’ll carefully sit outside and study, or read, or doodle idly in his notebook while the boy practices, his voice soothing and calm - even when it cracks and he hears the boy curse before resuming the song. _

_ So far, Kyungsoo’s heard the boy sing songs by Park Hyoshin, TVXQ, Park Jinyoung that one time, and a few different American artists (he hears one of the songs on the radio at home and when he asks who it is, his brother gives him a weird look and says, “It’s Radiohead, Soo-yah, I didn’t think you liked American music.”) _

_ Today when he approaches the music room, he immediately knows something’s different. Because instead of the usual tinny piano of a badly recorded karaoke track, there’s thudding bass and heavy drums, and when he gets closer to the door, he can hear the boy rapping. _

_ Rapping. _

_ Kyungsoo fumbles his book, just managing to catch it before it falls to the floor. He feels his knees go weak as the boy keeps going, spitting words and never once losing the beat, his pronunciation solid, his rhymes even, so he quickly leans against the wall with a little thump, hoping against hope he’ll be able to stay standing. _

_ When the song ends, Kyungsoo doesn’t stay to listen any longer, instead rushing to the bathroom to splash cold water on his flaming face. _

~

When the song ends, he calls Sungkyung. She picks up and he doesn’t even give her a chance to say hello, blurting out, “You never mentioned that he was the rapper on ‘Stay With Me’.”

She giggles. “Are you on his profile, Kyungsoo?”

“Maybe,” he says. “You know how many hits that song has, noona?”

“I do,” she replies. “Honestly, that’s probably how he got recommended for our drama. I want to say it even won a Best OST award last year at one of the award shows.”

He pauses. “Would you believe,” he starts, “that I’d never heard the whole thing before today?”

There’s a clatter from Sungkyung’s end of the line.

“You WHAT?” she shrieks. “Do Kyungsoo! How?!”

“I don’t know.” He shrugs, leaning back on his couch. “I don’t really listen to the radio.”

There’s an exasperated sigh. “You really need to listen to more music.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” he says, waving a hand even though she can’t see him. “Listen, I really liked ‘Let Me Love You,’ you were right to say it’s underrated.”

She cheers, which makes him smile. “I haven’t finished listening yet, though,” he continues.

“Hurry up, then!” Sungkyung exclaims. “I need to yell about him to someone new, all my friends are sick of me talking about him.”

He snorts. “I’m sure.”

“Yah, don’t be rude to your noona.”

“Yeah, okay. Hey, I have a question.”

“Shoot,” she says.

He pauses for a second before biting the bullet. “Why doesn’t his profile have a photo of him?”

“Why, you wanna know what he looks like?” Sungkyung asks, and Kyungsoo can practically hear her eyebrows waggling at him.

He sighs. “I’m just curious, noona. This is why I didn’t want to ask.”

“Whatever you say, Kyungsoo,” she giggles. “But no one knows what he looks like, he never posts photos of himself and all his album covers and music videos never feature him.”

“Hm. Interesting.”

“It adds to his mystery or something,” Sungkyung adds. “But I’m pretty sure he said in an interview somewhere that he wants people to actually like his music for music, not because they like his face.”

Kyungsoo raises his eyebrows. “That’s… actually a valid perspective.”

“See why I like him?”

“Yeah,” he answers, chuckling a little. “I kinda do. See you tomorrow? I promise I’ll be done listening by then.”

“Okay!” He can hear her grin through the phone. “See you bright and early! Be prepared for me to scream about my favorite songs!”

“Goodbye, Sungkyung.”

When he hears the click of the call ending, he immediately goes back to LOEY’s artist page and clicks on the next song. His interest is fully piqued.

Kyungsoo spends the rest of the evening listening to LOEY, his voice providing perfect background music as he plays with Meokmul, cooks and eats dinner, and goes over his lines for the next few days of filming. He’s surprised by the range of genres present in his songs, most of them smooth, chill R&B, but with some really interesting rap features on other artists’ songs and one pure vocal cover that gave him chills. 

What he’s really impressed with, however, is how much LOEY has improved, how much he’s honed his voice, his tone, his control. If Kyungsoo didn’t know better, he’d guess that LOEY had been a trainee for some extended period of time, like some of the other top idols he’d heard about.

He keeps the music on as he gets ready for bed, setting his newly-made playlist to repeat, and lets LOEY’s smooth, deep voice carry him to sleep.

~

_ Kyungsoo keeps his head down, staring at his desk, as his teacher reads out the top scores. As expected, his name is read last, and when he stands up to get his test back, his perfect score written in red across the top, he hears one of the loud boys, the most obnoxious one, whisper, “Of course Kyungsoo’s top, he has nothing else to do other than study.” _

_ “Don’t be mean, Baek,” one of the others says, his ears sticking out from his head like oddly-shaped wings. _

_ “It’s true,” the first boy says, rolling his eyes. _

_ The third boy leans forward, his lips curling up at the corners. “I’ve never seen him with anyone else, do you think he even has friends?” _

_ Ears-boy cuffs the back of his head. “You’re so rude,” he says. “Maybe he’s just shy.” _

_ Kyungsoo tucks his test into his notebook, clenching his fingers so hard his hands start to ache. It’s an effort to keep his face blank, like he didn’t hear anything, but he does it, tucking the hurt and the bitterness away, and returning his attention to the board, squinting as he tries to make out what the teacher is now writing. _

_ Unfortunately, he doesn’t focus on the lesson, his mind replaying the boys’ words over and over. He frowns, because it’s true, he thinks, he doesn’t have any friends. Not for lack of trying when he’d started high school, but the boy with the ears (he can’t remember his name) is right too in that he’s shy, he doesn’t know how to start conversations, how to be friendly with total strangers, how to get people to like him. _

_ The bell rings, signifying break time, and he shakes himself, trying to get rid of the dark cloud that had descended over him. The room empties, other students rushing off to the cafeteria, some to the library, some to go out and get food, everyone with their friends. He’s the only one alone. _

_ He does what he always does during breaks, takes his packed lunch and his review book and heads to the music room. _

_ The boy is in there, and he’s singing again, not rapping this time, and it’s a song Kyungsoo knows. He’s heard it on the radio a lot lately, and even though it’s in English, he knows the words to the chorus. The walls aren’t soundproof, as he knows after a couple months sitting here and listening, so he sings softly, softly enough that the boy inside won’t hear him. _

_ “Oh, every time I close my eyes, _

_ I see my name in shining lights, _

_ a different city every night, oh I, I swear, _

_ the world better prepare _

_ for when I’m a billionaire.” _

_ Their voices sound nice together, he thinks, even though his is nowhere near as pretty as his mystery boy’s is. He closes his eyes and lets his head thunk back against the wall, desolate for a second, until he hears the music cut off from inside the room. It shocks him into movement, making him grab his things and rush back down the hall to the supply closet that he knows is always left unlocked, and he quickly tucks himself in there, pressing his ear to the door to make sure the coast is clear. _

_ He hears the music room door creak open, and a couple of footsteps, but then the footsteps vanish and the door creaks shut. _

_ Kyungsoo breathes a sigh of relief and waits for another minute before he carefully lets himself out of the closet and hurries back toward his classroom. _

~

Filming goes smoothly for the next couple of weeks, other than the extremely long days and the varied temperatures they have to shoot in. The early spring weather is not cooperating with the director’s vision, so every time he’s not on camera Kyungsoo is wrapped in his giant parka, huddled under a heat lamp with the other actors, headphones on as he listens to his newly-made playlist containing most of LOEY’s discography. 

In the rare moments when neither he nor Nam Joohyuk, the second male lead, are in a scene, they play games together, idly chatting and making silly bets for the gag reel, which is why Kyungsoo is currently grumbling to himself as he hurries toward the closest convenience store to pick up snacks. Stupid Joohyuk with his stupid bet and stupid Jisoo for answering Joohyuk’s text faster than Jungseok had answered his.

Thankfully, the store is practically empty, just a couple of other people browsing the shelves and one bored-looking cashier scrolling through her phone, so he grabs a basket and starts to make his way through the store. He skirts around a father and daughter looking at candies and traipses toward the back where they keep the sausages and cup ramen, throwing a box of Sungkyung’s favorite cookies in his basket as he goes. He picks out a few sausages and some kimbap triangles before he heads to the ramen, and right as he’s reaching up for the extra-spicy one as payback for Joohyuk, another customer bumps into him, sending him stumbling away and making his basket tip, emptying half of its contents onto the floor.

“Motherfucker,” Kyungsoo mumbles, glaring up at him, and the guy jerks back.

“Oh god, I’m so sorry!” he exclaims, bending down to help him gather his things. “I wasn’t paying attention, I didn’t mean to knock your stuff over.”

Kyungsoo huffs. This guy has a deep voice, and he would think it was attractive if he hadn’t been so rude two seconds ago. “Whatever,” he says, rolling his eyes as he scoops up the sausages from the floor. “Just watch where you’re going next time.”

The guy puts the last cup of ramen back into his basket and straightens up, and Kyungsoo feels his heart do a double take in his chest before he shoves the feeling away, because oh _ lord _is this guy tall. He can’t really see the rest of his face, since a black baseball cap is pulled low over his forehead, hiding his eyes, but his shoulders are broad and his ears are sticking out from under the hat like tiny wings and something is niggling at the back of his brain but he doesn’t know what. 

“I will,” the guy says, rubbing the back of his neck. “Listen, I feel really bad about this, let me pay for it to make it up to you.”

“That’s not necessary,” Kyungsoo replies. “But thank you for the offer.” He turns and walks away.

“Wait!” the guy calls, and Kyungsoo glances back to see him running after him. “I’m serious, I feel awful about it.” He frowns. “I wouldn’t feel right not paying for it after I made you drop it all.”

“And I said it’s fine,” Kyungsoo retorts. “Don’t feel bad, it was an accident.”

“It was my fault,” the guy argues, following him as he walks up to the cashier. “I want to make it up to you.”

Kyungsoo sighs and turns to face him. “You don’t have to,” he says, squinting a little against the harsh lights of the store.

The cashier pops her gum. “Your total is 15,200 won,” she says mechanically. 

Kyungsoo looks away from the guy and reaches into his pocket for his wallet, digging out two 10,000 bills, but before he can give them to her the tall guy places a 50,000 in her hand. 

“Hey,” he snaps. Tall guy doesn’t even look at him, just accepts his change back from the girl and shoves his hands in his pockets, leaving Kyungsoo to awkwardly take his things and nod goodbye before walking after him. “Hey,” he says again, more forcefully, and the guy finally stops and turns back to look at him once they’re outside. “I said you didn’t have to pay.”

The guy shrugs, taking off his hat for a second and raking a hand through his dark hair before readjusting the cap on his head. Kyungsoo notes that his hands are large, just like the rest of him, and that his big puppy eyes are brown, and that there’s something about the shape of the guy’s face that feels… familiar somehow. “It was the right thing to do,” he says, and tucks his hands back into his pockets. 

Kyungsoo stares at him for another second. The way he’s standing, slightly bowlegged, head ducked as he looks at the ground, ears still sticking out from under his hat… it keeps reminding him of someone he hasn’t thought of in years, and the little thought at the back of his brain gets stronger.

“Park Chanyeol?”

The name slips out, completely unintended, and Kyungsoo immediately feels his face go warm as he starts to stutter out apologies, but he looks up and meets the guy’s eyes and is surprised to see naked shock in his face.

“H-how… you know my name?” he breathes.

Kyungsoo’s eyes widen. “Park Chanyeol? From Class 12-E at Sinsa High?”

The guy - who, apparently, is actually Chanyeol - nods frantically. 

“We were in the same class,” Kyungsoo says, shifting his weight so he’s a little more comfortable. “I’m-”

“Do Kyungsoo,” Chanyeol says, almost immediately, his cheeks slightly pink from the cold. “I know who you are.”

Kyungsoo blinks owlishly at him. “Then why didn’t you say anything?”

Chanyeol looks uncomfortable, rubbing the back of his neck again. “Uh, well,” he starts, “it didn’t seem like you remembered me, which makes sense since we never really talked back in high school, and, uh, I didn’t want to scare you off by looking like a crazy fan or something, and I don’t know, I didn’t want to make it awkward if you actually didn’t remember me and I started talking about high school or if you ended up not being Do Kyungsoo but just a random guy who looks like him and -”

Kyungsoo can’t help the tiny smile that crosses his lips. “I get it,” he says, interrupting Chanyeol’s rambling. “No worries.”

“Ah, well, okay then,” Chanyeol says, looking a little sheepish. 

They stand there in silence for a second before Kyungsoo’s phone rings. He digs it out of his pocket, rolling his eyes when he sees that it’s Joohyuk, who’s also sent him about ten texts saying that he’s hungry and would Kyungsoo hurry up, please, he’s in the next scene and the director is starting to worry. 

“I have to go,” he says, looking back at Chanyeol. “It was nice to see you.”

“Uh, yeah, you too!” Chanyeol smiles and Kyungsoo takes the cue to walk away, answering the call and silently listening to Joohyuk yell as he does.

His run-in with Park Chanyeol is all but wiped from his mind the moment he gets back to set, but once filming wraps for the night and he gets home and settles into bed with Meokmul at his feet, he can’t stop thinking about it. What was the likelihood, he muses, that he would run into someone from his high school in a completely different part of Seoul, seven years later. Especially someone that he once had thought would never deign to give him the time of day.

~

_ The music room is silent. Kyungsoo even peeks inside to see if anyone’s there, but the room is as empty as his stomach, so he carefully closes the door and walks back to his locker to get his lunch. It’s sunny outside, and his mother keeps telling him he needs to get more fresh air, so he grabs his jacket and heads outside to find somewhere to sit and eat. _

_ Despite the chill in the air, it’s a nice day, so he walks over to one of the benches by the doors and sits down, pulling out a textbook to read while he eats his homemade kimbap. _

_ He’s nearly finished with the chapter on statistical plots (which he despises, and he makes a mental note to go over them again when he goes to the library later) when three loud, chattering voices make him glance up. _

_ It’s the three boys in his class, the loud ones. They don’t even look at him as they settle on the other end of the bench, laughing as they open their lunches. _

_ The obnoxious one bumps the shoulder of the one with the high cheekbones. “Yah, Kim Jongdae,” he says, giggling. “Can’t believe you didn’t tell us.” _

_ The boy with the ears grins, and his smile is big and dopey and makes his face brighten even more. “Can’t believe we found out by walking in on you!” _

_ “Shut up,” groans cheekbones - Jongdae. “I didn’t say anything because I knew you’d make fun of me.” _

_ “Me? Make fun of you?” The obnoxious one looks affronted. _

_ Ears boy punches his shoulder and they both look at each other before bursting into laughter. _

_ “I hate you both,” Jongdae says, putting his head in his hands. _

_ “You love us, don’t lie,” obnoxious boy says, slinging his arm around Jongdae’s shoulders. “Besides, who else besides me and Chanyeol would you trust with this, hm?” _

_ “I trust Chanyeollie,” Jongdae says, shoving at him. “I don’t trust you.” _

_ “You trust Park Chanyeol over me?” obnoxious boy squawks, putting a hand on his chest and doubling over as if in pain. Kyungsoo files the name away in his mind. _

_ “Yes,” Jongdae says, so matter-of-fact it makes him huff a quiet laugh into his book. _

_ Ears boy - Chanyeol - whoops. “Ha! Take that, Byun Baekhyun,” he says, throwing his arms in the air and grinning like a madman. _

_ Obnoxious boy, whose name is apparently Baekhyun, pouts for a second before he jumps on Chanyeol and they start wrestling, Jongdae egging them on. _

_ Kyungsoo watches for a second longer before he looks back down at his textbook. The three of them are in their own little world, he thinks. No concern for anyone else, just them and their tight bond of friendship. _

_ He finishes his kimbap, managing to ignore their loud laughter, and closes his textbook before he gets up and walks back into the building. The back of his neck is hot, probably because of the sun. _

~

The drama starts airing, and the public loves it, pushing the ratings to a network high of 27%, practically unheard of for a cable drama. Kyungsoo has to be even more careful when he goes out, because people have started recognizing him, swarming him for autographs and photos and the like. But they’re still filming, they have five more episodes to shoot, so he reluctantly wears hats and masks to and from the filming locations, and flashes his actor badge at every new member of the security team he spots.

He loses another bet with Joohyuk and has to get snacks again, and this time when he goes to the convenience store he doesn’t run into Chanyeol. Not like he was hoping to, or anything like that.

LOEY’s OST for the drama manages an all-kill on the charts the day it drops, and Kyungsoo immediately adds it to all of his playlists.

During one of their last night shoots, both his and Sungkyung’s phones go off in the middle of a scene, forcing a retake. Sungkyung shrieks when she finally checks hers - thankfully, during a break - and sprints over to him. “Kyungsoo, look!” she says breathlessly, shoving her phone in his face.

He smirks and holds up his own phone, already streaming track three. “I got the notification too, noona,” he says, pulling one headphone off and pressing pause. “Want to listen together?”

“Of course,” she says, immediately sitting down and pressing the free headphone to her ear. “Start over. I need the full experience.”

Kyungsoo quickly scrolls back to the first song on LOEY’s new mini album, ‘Hand’, and hits play.

They finally finish shooting, and on the last day the director announces that they’ll be having a wrap party at Elyxion, the new club that had just opened in Cheongdam-dong. 

Kyungsoo pops back to his apartment to feed Meokmul and change out of his casual wear into something slightly more party-appropriate, humming along to ‘Give Me That’ and ‘Ottae?’ as the five tracks on ‘Hand’ loop in the background. 

He finally gets to Elyxion, the traffic in Cheongdam having been terrible, and when he walks into the club he’s surprised to see a large number of people already there, a tall DJ working the tables in the back.

“Kyungsoo!” a voice yells, and he looks over to see Sungkyung, Joohyuk, and Han Boreum, their other co-star, waving frantically at him. “Come drink with us!”

He shakes his head, smiling slightly, and heads over to their table.

A couple of drinks later, he’s loosened up a bit, enough to accept Sungkyung’s offer to dance despite it not really being an offer - she’d just flung her hand at him and demanded he come on the dance floor with her. They jump around each other for a little bit, Kyungsoo laughing openly at her antics, before he starts feeling warm. He rubs the back of his neck and grins at Sungkyung. She smiles back at him before her eyes lock on something over his shoulder, and he watches her expression change, idly wondering what she’s looking at, but then she returns her gaze to him as she smirks and he knows something is up.

“Kyungsoo-yah,” she sing-songs, leaning into him, “there’s a hot guy staring at you.”

He stiffens. “W-what?”

“Mm-hmm.” She smiles again, pointing her chin behind him. “He’s real tall, and he’s got dark hair, too, damn. Like he checks every one of your boxes.” She pokes his chest. “I think…,” she starts, poking him again, “you should go talk to him.”

“Is he actually cute or are you just drunk?” Kyungsoo raises an eyebrow at her. She’s one of the few people who know that Kyungsoo’s gay, since he’s known her just about as long as he’s been in the industry, and he knows that she’s bi, so it’s an even exchange.

Sungkyung shakes her head firmly. “No, he’s cute with a capital C,” she says, her face flushed. “I can tell he’s got muscles, and he’s so tall, and oh, his ears are so cute, they stick out from his head a little bit and it’s adorable but also super hot like what the fuck, who let him look like that.”

Kyungsoo whirls around, dislodging Sungkyung from where she had been leaning on him, and locks eyes with Chanyeol, who is, indeed, standing across the room from them, nursing a drink, his gaze trained on Kyungsoo.

“Fuck,” he murmurs. “Noona, I have to go.”

“Oh?” She follows him off the dance floor. “Are you gonna go talk?”

“Yes,” he says shortly, gesturing at Boreum to come watch Sungkyung. As Boreum wraps an arm around her, she yells, “Good luck, Soo!”, making him roll his eyes.

“Come on, Kyungie,” Boreum says, guiding her towards a booth and grinning at Kyungsoo. He smiles back and then makes a beeline for his old classmate.

~

_ Kyungsoo plods down the hall, his heart heavy, his brain feeling like complete mush. His teachers were happy with his mock exam scores, but now he has four different tests to study for alongside the Suneung, and he wants to sit down and cry. Or maybe nap. Do anything but study. _

_ He’s sick of studying. He just wants a break. _

_ He passes the music room and hears piano keys tapping out a melody, and he grins to himself as he slides down the wall to sit on the floor and listen. _

_ The piano seems melancholy, the chords long and definitely in a minor key, and when the boy (his boy, his mind traitorously thinks) starts to sing in English, something about driving himself crazy and feeling that everything is heavy on his shoulders, Kyungsoo can’t help but start to cry. _

_ The song encapsulates everything he’s feeling right now, and he’s just so tired, tired of the weight of expectations, tired of being alone, tired of his entire life, that he lets the tears fall, making no attempt to stop them. _

_ He wakes up to a silent, empty hallway. Blinking, he checks his watch, gasping when he sees that he’s already ten minutes late to his chemistry class. He scrambles upright, a piece of paper fluttering to the ground as he does so, and he picks it up, thinking it’s a spare sheet of notes from his textbook. _

_ He inhales sharply as he takes in the messy handwriting, clearly not his, and frantically glances around. _

_ He’s alone in the hall. _

_ He returns his gaze to the note in his hand. _

_ “This might seem strange, but you looked so sad when you were asleep that I figured you needed something to cheer you up. You can do it, I believe in you! Do Kyungsoo, fighting! ~^^~” _

_ He smiles and tucks the note into his pocket. _

~

“What are you doing here?”

Chanyeol jumps, almost spilling his drink on himself. “Oh - I - K-Kyungsoo, hi,” he says, gaze darting around frantically.

Kyungsoo crosses his arms. “This is a closed event, Chanyeol,” he says, glaring. “What are you doing here?”

Chanyeol puts his drink down and shoves his hands in his pockets, drawing Kyungsoo’s eyes to his neatly tailored suit, the silver cuff links in his sleeves, the crisp white button down he’s wearing under his jacket. “Would you believe me if I told you I was invited?”

That makes Kyungsoo’s eyebrows raise. “How?”

Chanyeol shifts, looking a little nervous. “Uh, I - I can’t really tell you.”

“Then I suppose I’ll just have to get security to escort you out,” Kyungsoo retorts, making to walk away.

“Wait,” Chanyeol says desperately, grabbing his forearm. His hand is warm, long fingers able to wrap completely around his wrist, and Kyungsoo looks back at him, hoping that it’s dark enough in this corner of the club to his his rapidly warming face. 

“What?”

“Um…” Chanyeol lets go of him and twists his hands together. “I can’t tell you, but I can, uh, show you. In about five minutes or so.”

Kyungsoo turns to fully face him, crossing his arms again. “Seriously?”

Chanyeol nods. “Yeah.” He takes a step towards him, eyes searching his face, and Kyungsoo watches as his face falls just the slightest bit. “Please, Kyungsoo, just trust me.”

His eyes bore into him beseechingly, and Kyungsoo will never admit it out loud but he has a weakness for puppy-dog eyes, so he relents. “Alright, fine,” he says, and pretends not to notice Chanyeol’s sigh of relief. “But in five minutes, if I still don’t have proof, I’m calling security,” he adds.

“You won’t need to,” Chanyeol says, running a hand through his hair before glancing at his silver watch. “Ah, shit, I have to go.” He looks at Kyungsoo again. “This is me showing you,” he says cryptically, and then he’s gone, vanished into the crowd.

Kyungsoo scrubs his hands down his face. He needs another drink.

As he makes his way back to the bar, the DJ lowers the volume on the music and raises a mic. “Thank you all for your hard work!” he shouts, and a group of cheers rise from everyone in the room. “As a special treat,” the DJ continues, making the room grow silent as everyone turns their attention to him, “and to celebrate his all-kill, here tonight, singing his hit OST ‘SSFW’, LOEY!”

The room explodes into applause.

Kyungsoo swivels toward the DJ booth, away from his new drink.

The screen behind the booth lightens, illuminating a shadow behind it, a shadow in a suit. A shadow with slicked-back hair and ears that stick out from his head like tiny wings.

LOEY raises his hand, which is holding a mic, and says, “Hello, everyone!”, receiving cheers and more applause.

Kyungsoo is frozen to the spot.

He’d just heard that voice. He’d just heard that voice ask him to trust him.

“It’s so great to be here tonight,” LOEY continues. “I’ve been watching the drama as it airs, and I’d like to congratulate our main cast, Han Boreum, Nam Joohyuk, Lee Sungkyung, and of course…” His voice softens. “Do Kyungsoo.”

There’s another round of applause.

Kyungsoo can’t breathe.

“This is for all of you. Thank you for giving me this chance to sing for your amazing drama!” LOEY waves, drawing more cheers, and the song starts to play.

The same song that Kyungsoo had listened to all those months ago in that meeting.

The song that had introduced him to LOEY, who had quickly become one of his favorite artists.

The song sung by the same voice he’d heard in the music room throughout high school.

The song sung by none other than Park Chanyeol.

He listens to SSFW in a daze. Chanyeol, LOEY, whoever, his voice is just as smooth as always, but Kyungsoo can’t appreciate his talent like usual. He’s still reeling.

Somehow he makes it back over to where he’d been standing with Chanyeol before, his drink in his hand, and before he really knows what he’s doing he finishes it, the alcohol burning through his bloodstream.

He leans against the wall for an indeterminate amount of time, trying to process, but his shocked stupor is broken when Chanyeol appears in front of him, panting slightly.

“Hi,” he says weakly, and Kyungsoo blinks.

“You’re LOEY,” he says. “You.”

Chanyeol nods.

“I…” Kyungsoo trails off. “Okay.”

“I know, it’s hard to believe,” Chanyeol says, twisting his fingers together. “Lame old me is actually behind an okay singer.”

HIs words shock Kyungsoo even more than finding out Chanyeol was LOEY did. “Okay?” he hisses. “You really think you’re just okay?”

Chanyeol’s face falls. “I mean… if you don’t like it, you can just tell me.”

“Shut up.” 

Chanyeol looks at him, surprised.

“You’re amazing.”

“What?” he whispers.

“Chanyeol, your songs are amazing,” Kyungsoo repeats. “We wouldn’t have picked you for the OST if we didn’t like your style.”

Chanyeol runs a hand through his hair. “I guess,” he says dubiously. 

“Seriously.” Kyungsoo takes a step toward him. “Sungkyung is a huge fan of yours, she sent me your profile when I asked her abour LOEY because I liked the OST so much and I swear, I’ve had your discography on repeat for the past three months.” He meets Chanyeol’s eyes. “You’re so talented, Chanyeol, it’s astounding.” Chanyeol’s eyes are a gorgeous shade of brown, and Kyungsoo feels like he’s drowning in them, and he lets the next thought he has slip out without any filter. “You’ve improved so much since high school.”

“Wh-” Chanyeol chokes. “High school?”

“Shit,” Kyungsoo says, his tongue slightly thick. “I didn’t mean to say that. Never mind.”

Chanyeol’s face is slowly turning pink. Or maybe it’s just the lighting. “High school?” he repeats. “I… I never sang in front of anyone in high school.”

“Forget it,” Kyungsoo says abruptly. “I have to go.”

“Kyungsoo, wait.” Chanyeol steps toward him. They’re too close together. All Kyungsoo can see is Chanyeol, his big brown eyes, his stupidly cute ears, his tall frame that he’s matured into supremely well.

“I heard you practicing in the music room,” he blurts, unable to hold on any longer. “Whenever no one was around. And I always stayed and listened because I liked your voice.”

Chanyeol’s eyes widen. “You did?” he says quietly, almost to himself.

“Yeah.” Kyungsoo looks at the floor, unable to maintain eye contact any longer. “You were so determined, and your voice was so soothing, that I wanted to listen. There were days where I would sit in the hall and study while you practiced, and it was so peaceful, I always checked to see if you were there whenever I had a free period.”

He takes a deep breath. “And I didn’t have any friends in high school, no one wanted to talk to me and I was too shy to try and talk to anyone else, so I kind of felt like you, well, your voice, but really you, were my only friend.”

“Kyungsoo…” Something in Chanyeol’s voice breaks.

“So as soon as they played us your OST in that meeting, I knew who you were, but not _ who you were _.” Kyungsoo sighs. “I’m sorry. I’ll go.”

“Kyungsoo.” Chanyeol’s voice is firm, and he looks back up at him.

“You can do it, I believe in you,” he says, and Kyungsoo feels like he’s just been given an electric shock. “Do Kyungsoo, fighting.” He steps closer. “Do you remember?”

“The note…” Kyungsoo inhales shakily. “That was you, too?”

Chanyeol nods, his eyes serious. “I always thought you hated me,” he admits. “Whenever I would look at you, you’d be glaring - at me, at Baekhyun and Jongdae, at the teacher, whatever. So I didn’t talk to you, even though I wanted to make friends with you. But that day, when I left the music room and you were outside, asleep, your textbooks next to you - I don’t know, I had to say something.”

Kyungsoo’s heart clenches. “I have astigmatism, Chanyeol.” He gestures at his eyes. “I hated wearing glasses, and contacts hurt my eyes, so I was just trying to see. I got corrective surgery before I debuted as an actor.”

“Oh.”

“But.” He looks at Chanyeol again, taking him in. “That note… your note, I hung it above my desk in my room. To remind myself that someone believed in me, even when I didn’t believe in myself.” He rubs the back of his neck. “I took it with me when I moved. It’s in my apartment now.”

“I…” Chanyeol’s voice trails off. He looks moved. “I’m glad it helped you.” He gives Kyungsoo a watery smile. “You’ve done so much, ever since _ It’s Okay _. You’re one of the biggest young actors in the whole country, you know that, right? Your talent is incredible.”

“Thanks, Chanyeol.” Kyungsoo’s voice is quiet, but he gives him a tiny smile.

Chanyeol grins in response, and Kyungsoo watches as it lights up his entire face, the same way it did in high school.

“Can… can we get coffee sometime? Or lunch?” Chanyeol asks, still smiling. “I’d love to really catch up with you, somewhere with actual light so I don’t have to squint to see your face.”

Kyungsoo laughs at that, and Chanyeol’s grin gets brighter. “Sure,” he says, feeling his heart leap in his chest.

~

_ Kyungsoo watches out of the corner of his eye as ears boy (Chanyeol, he reminds himself, his name is Chanyeol) jumps up and down with his two friends outside the school gate, yelling about the fact that they all got into the same university. _

_ He smiles, glancing down at the acceptance letter in his hand. _

_ He wishes them all the best. Maybe, later in life, if he ever encounters them again, he’ll be brave enough to talk to them. To try and start a friendship. _

_ He looks at the business card in his other hand. Or maybe, if he still doesn’t feel brave enough, he’ll be able to act like he’s brave, and that’ll be enough. _

~

Kyungsoo walks into the restaurant that he and Chanyeol had agreed upon earlier that morning and immediately spots him at a corner table, his tall frame easily identifiable. 

Chanyeol looks up and waves at him, a smile breaking over his face, and Kyungsoo smiles back.

He’s thankful that they crossed paths again, because he’s never felt this happy before.

Not even when he first sat down in that hallway in high school to listen to a boy practicing in the music room.

**Author's Note:**

> PLEASE listen to [chanyeol's soundcloud](https://soundcloud.com/realpcysc/tracks)  
anyways  
WHEW that was a ride~  
thank you to mod n for running this wonderful fest!!!  
i had a blast writing this and i hope my fellow chansoo supremacists enjoyed this piece ^^  
♥
> 
> quick note: the suneung is the korean university entrance exam~
> 
> [tumblr](https://yixingminseokjongdae.tumblr.com) | [twitter](https://twitter.com/allforexot9) | [cc](https://curiouscat.me/moon_goddess)


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